Kaduna
The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) has been urged to extend health insurance coverage to petrol station workers, following the recent launch of a health insurance scheme by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL).
Petrol station workers are exposed daily to significant health and safety risks and therefore deserve adequate protection, irrespective of whether they are employed by NNPCL retail outlets or by independent petroleum marketers. The NNPCL initiative, according to stakeholders, has set a commendable benchmark that should be replicated across the entire downstream petroleum sector.
Speaking on the issue, Comrade Ibrahim Zango, Convener of Concerned Petrol Station Workers, emphasised that the welfare and wellbeing of workers must be treated as a top priority. He stated that access to health insurance is not a privilege but a basic necessity that every worker is entitled to.
Comrade Zango also clarified that the current leadership of the workers’ platform did not emerge through a formal election but was formed out of necessity due to prevailing circumstances affecting petrol station workers nationwide. He stressed the need for a well-organised leadership structure at the local, state and national levels to ensure better coordination and improved service delivery within the petroleum downstream sector.
He further noted that given the harsh economic conditions and the rising cost of healthcare, workers can no longer afford to wait indefinitely for relief.
Comrade Zango therefore called on independent petroleum marketers to take immediate and concrete steps to provide health insurance coverage for their workers, stressing that proactive action is critical to safeguarding lives and sustaining the workforce that keeps the downstream sector running.
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